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Mummy Game 014
2:03:42 AM Kate: Luxor, March 1922. After much packing, sorting, organizing and a bit of shouting, the expedition gets on its way to the Valley of the Kings, on the west bank of the Nile and in the heart of the Theban Necropolis. 2:06:17 AM Felix: ((Indeed! Is Captain Eyepatch McRugged coming with us as threatened?)) 2:06:59 AM Kate: It's a wide valley, surrounded by sand and rock, with tombs built into the Theban hills. Felix remembers it as the Great Field, though he can't remember much else about it. The Egyptian workers have built a small village of sorts for the expedition, with small huts for themselves and for the leaders--your group. 2:08:48 AM Kate: Indeed, Captain Forrester does join you, though he's not really excessively rugged. The reason for the silver cat walking stick becomes increasingly plain as the day goes on; his limp gets more and more pronounced and he really relies on it to get around. Ariadne seems to be interested in this, but doesn't ask; nobody else does either and he seems quite content to be ignored. He watches *everything.* 2:09:51 AM Kate: The rest of the day is taken up by unpacking and organization, with David and Paul doing most of the talking to the Egyptians--many of whom have already been at the encampment for days getting things ready. 2:10:17 AM Felix: At some point, when I can escape from Forrester's gaze, I'd like to chat with Ariadne.)) 2:12:00 AM Kate: The Countess has seemed cheerful, in her stoic Russian way, and a bit more affectionate with Felix than usual. Celestine is avoiding Forrester like the plague, and O'Malley seems vaguely troubled. Hilde is totally occupied getting the camera gear together, and setting it all up--there's a lot of it, likely more than she strictly needs. 2:13:25 AM Kate: Darkness falls across the land! But that's okay, it's sunset, and it's beautiful, brilliant reds and golds and violets across the desert landscape. Felix can catch Ariadne after supper, before people start heading to bed after a long day of unpacking and finding out they didn't bring what they thought they did and did bring a lot of things they probably didn't want at all. 2:14:02 AM Felix: ((We all set up in tents?)) 2:15:09 AM Kate: Small cabin-style houses. The Driscoll boys are sharing one, Celestine and Hilde are sharing one, Ariadne has her own, as does O'Malley. 2:15:56 AM Kate: You're rooming with the Countess, who has a larger cabin than anybody else and who has had the inside fitted out like a real house--wall-hangings and heavy rugs. 2:16:16 AM Felix: ((Fancy!)) 2:16:51 AM Kate: Very fancy; also appropriate to the area, as whoever did it chose Persian decor. 2:17:30 AM Kate: Ariadne's in her tiny cabin, which has a larger door than the others and a very flat, very smooth floor, making it easy for her to move in her chair. 2:19:37 AM Felix: Hey, can I ask you a weird question? 2:19:53 AM Kate: Ariadne: Of course, but that *doesn't* mean I'll answer. 2:20:27 AM | Edited 2:21:49 AM Felix: Well, I'll ask my question and we'll take it from there. I've been having some weird dreams lately. Have you? 2:21:38 AM Kate: ((Have?)) 2:22:10 AM Kate: Ariadne: Weird? Not especially weird, no. 2:23:01 AM Felix: I've been having very... vivid dreams about ancient Egypt. 2:23:22 AM Kate: Ariadne: I dream about Egypt a lot normally. 2:24:06 AM Felix: I'm a prince named Ramses. It's like I'm there. And I remember everything, unlike a real dream. 2:24:24 AM Kate: Ariadne: A lot of people were named Ramses. 2:25:13 AM Felix: ...and I can read and write hieroglyphs now. 2:25:32 AM Kate: She perks up a bit. "Really? Show me." 2:25:41 AM Kate: She hands him paper and a pen! 2:25:56 AM Felix: He writes her name! Or the closest approximation he can manage. 2:26:34 AM Kate: Ariadne: ... you *do*. 2:27:01 AM Kate: Ariadne: How would I tell the ordinary Egypt dreams apart from the ones like you've had? 2:27:16 AM Kate: Ariadne: I always dream I'm somebody rich and beautiful and not lame in the leg. 2:27:42 AM Felix: Are they... vivid? Do you remember what you're named in these dreams? 2:29:04 AM Kate: Ariadne: Well, yes, sometimes. Nefertari and the like. 2:29:50 AM Kate: Ariadne: Neferu, Weret, Neferet, Aya, Tjan. 2:30:18 AM Kate: Ariadne: All kinds of things. I've been studying Egypt for a long time, remember? I learned hieroglyphs along with my English letters. 2:30:54 AM Felix: He nods. "Are you always the same person, though?" 2:32:08 AM Kate: Ariadne: No, of course not. Lately I've been dreaming I'm a beautiful princess Ashayt. 2:32:18 AM Kate: That name strikes Felix as *very* familiar. 2:32:27 AM Felix: Ashayt? 2:33:03 AM Kate: Ariadne nods. 2:34:25 AM Kate: Ariadne: I wear a wig and one of those diaphanous white gowns without a top in the dreams. For some reason it seems natural there, although it would be terribly scandalous here. 2:35:51 AM | Edited 2:35:58 AM Felix: Felix tries to place it! he tries writing in in hieroglyphs to jog his memory. 2:36:22 AM Kate: Ariadne: ... yes, like that. 2:37:10 AM Felix: Sounds familiar. 2:37:21 AM Felix: When did these dreams start? 2:37:31 AM Kate: Ariadne shrugs. "A few weeks ago, in Cairo." 2:38:06 AM Felix: That's when mine started. 2:38:30 AM Kate: Ariadne: ... what does it mean? 2:39:23 AM Felix: Your brother gets apoplectic when people bring this stuff up, but I think there's something supernatural going on. 2:39:43 AM Kate: Ariadne: Really? The murders, you mean? You didn't do it, did you? 2:41:24 AM Felix: Of course not. 2:41:32 AM Felix: Did you? 2:42:29 AM Kate: Ariadne: Of course not. 2:43:29 AM Felix: Well, good. Neither of us did it. These horrible murders are caught up in it somehow, though. 2:44:59 AM Kate: Ariadne: What are you going to do about it? 2:46:58 AM Felix: I don't know what I can do. Try and stop people from dying the best I can. 2:48:15 AM Kate: Ariadne: ... Egyptians believed a lot of funny things. Do you think they're all true? 2:48:51 AM Felix: Like what? 2:49:54 AM Kate: Ariadne shrugs. "I don't know. The afterlife and that kind of thing." 2:50:41 AM Felix: I once knew a man who said that every single thing that everyone ever believed is in fact true. 2:51:13 AM Kate: Ariadne laughs. "Well I wouldn't go that far." 2:52:27 AM Felix: Well, neither would I. But it rings a lot truer these days. 2:53:06 AM Kate: Ariadne: Tomorrow the real work starts, you know. What do you think of that policeman? He's so quiet. 2:56:45 AM Felix: I don't like him. 2:57:42 AM Kate: Ariadne: Maybe I'll have a crush on him. He's not a bit like my brothers. 3:02:06 AM Felix: Isn't he a bit old for you? 3:03:36 AM Kate: Ariadne: Maybe. But he's terribly attractive somehow. 3:04:00 AM Felix: So my sister tells me. 3:05:18 AM Felix: I suppose he's taller than me. 3:06:17 AM Kate: Ariadne: Oh, if Celestine likes him he'd never look at me. 3:06:49 AM Felix: She just thinks he's attractive. He scares her, I think. 3:08:22 AM Kate: Ariadne: He doesn't scare me. 3:08:45 AM Felix: Well, he hasn't questioned you yet. 3:10:33 AM Kate: Ariadne smiles. "I'll be sure to fix my hair just so." 3:11:31 AM Felix: All right. Have a good night, Ariadne. 3:11:43 AM Kate: Ariadne: You know I love you best, Felix. 3:12:08 AM Kate: Ariadne: G'night. 3:12:22 AM Felix: He waves, and heads back to the cabin he's sharing witht he Countess. 3:16:45 AM Kate: On the way over, he interrupts a couple locked in an embrace! 3:16:54 AM Kate: ... it's Celestine and Forrester, awkwardly. 3:17:09 AM Kate: They break apart; Celestine stammers something and flees. 3:17:23 AM Kate: Forrester watches her, frowning, and saying nothing. 3:22:10 AM Felix: ...well. 3:22:40 AM Felix: Good job on the impartiality during an investigation, Forrester. 3:22:56 AM Felix: Felix stalks off to his cabin! 3:26:19 AM Kate: Forrester, faintly; ... that wasn't my idea. 3:27:02 AM Kate: He sounds more confused than anything. 3:27:26 AM Felix: Right. 3:28:00 AM Kate: Forrester stumps along after him, limp very pronounced. "Excuse me, Mr. Cray. I do have one question for you." 3:28:42 AM Felix: Go ahead. I may or may not answer, I'm rather cross with you at the moment. 3:30:34 AM Kate: He sounds pretty annoyed himself. "I had merely meant to ask if you thought your sister's personal integrity would outweigh her loyalty to her *family.*" 3:35:43 AM Felix: What are you talking about? 3:36:24 AM Felix: You mean, if she's trying to seduce you to protect me? No. 3:38:13 AM Kate: Forrester: For what it's *worth* I don't actually have a suspect, and if she keeps dodgin' around like a guilty person throwing red herrings about it'll only draw attention to her and by extension, you. Good *evening.* 3:38:40 AM Kate: He turns around and starts limping back to his cabin. Even the thump of the walking stick on the ground sounds angry. 3:39:38 AM Kate: It's also worth noting his accent slipped a bit along with his temper; it got less posh and more rural. 3:40:13 AM Felix: Felix heads back to his cabin! 3:41:29 AM Kate: The Countess is there, reading her book about the French Revolution. 3:42:27 AM Felix: Felix lays down on the bed! 3:43:17 AM Kate: She puts her book down and turns to snuggle into him a bit. "You are tense." 3:47:44 AM Felix: I am. Caught Cel kissing Forrester. 3:50:19 AM Kate: She blinks. "Why?" 3:51:08 AM Felix: I don't know. I imagine it has to do with the fact that he's apparently dreamy. 3:53:14 AM Kate: Countess: ... is he? 3:53:37 AM Felix: According to both Cel and Ariadne he's apparently pretty attractive. 3:56:08 AM Kate: She raises an eyebrow. 3:56:26 AM Kate: Countess: He seems to be a pale reflection of you. 3:56:56 AM Felix: Well, he's taller. Has scars. Seems a bit more rugged. Maybe he's an upgraded version. 3:58:46 AM Kate: Countess: You have scars, and as noted before, your height merely serves to make you more ideal. 4:01:09 AM Felix: After I caught him and my sister smooching, He implied that she was doing it to protect me. I should have decked him. 4:03:16 AM Kate: Countess: Would she? 4:04:28 AM Felix: Damned if I know. But it would imply that she thought I was guilty. And I don't much like that thought. 4:05:55 AM Kate: Countess: Not necessarily. ... we three look the most guilty. 4:07:01 AM Kate: Countess: Though we two know we likely did nothing. 4:08:24 AM Felix: I know Cel didn't do anything. 4:08:39 AM Kate: Countess: Agreed. 4:09:28 AM Kate: Countess: However, we are privy to information Captain Forrester does not have, and he could easily make a mistake. Your sister could be diverting him for that reason. 4:09:57 AM Felix: Or she could just like him. 4:11:24 AM Kate: Countess: That is also possible. 4:11:53 AM Kate: Countess: However, one is capable of doing worse things for love. Families can be very close. 4:12:32 AM Felix: Well. Whatever her reasons, it's making him more suspicious. 4:13:58 AM Kate: Countess: Talk to her about it in the morning. 4:15:51 AM Felix: I was planning on it. 4:18:51 AM Kate: Countess: Is there anything I can do to help? 4:20:12 AM Felix: ...I don't think so. 4:21:27 AM Kate: She nods. "If there were, I would do it." 4:22:01 AM Felix: Felix smiles. "I know. 4:23:38 AM Kate: Countess: You are important to me. 4:23:58 AM Felix: I'm glad. 4:27:14 AM Kate: She snuggles up to him. "Goodnight, Felix." 4:28:22 AM Felix: Goodnight, Yelena. 5:24:18 PM Kate: March 1922, Luxor. Felix is awakened in the middle of the night by someone pounding on the door! The Countess is gone again. 5:24:59 PM Felix: Felix looks around! He goes to the door. 5:25:31 PM Kate: It's David. "There, I knocked this time, are you happy? Two more damned murders!" 5:26:13 PM Felix: What? Who?! 5:27:36 PM Kate: David: Two more Egyptians. One was 13. *Thirteen*. 5:28:08 PM Felix: Felix throws on some clothes and goes. "Take me." 5:30:57 PM Kate: David brings Felix to the edge of the campsite, where the cabins are a bit more thrown-together and there are still some tents because not enough were built. 5:33:09 PM Kate: In one of the cabins there are two people lying there stabbed in the heart--the boy was stabbed only once, but the man... well, there's blood everywhere and you can actually see his heart through his ribcage, as if his assailant tried to pull it out. 5:33:13 PM Kate: David: Where the hell is the Countess? 5:33:55 PM Kate: Captain Forrester is examining the bodies; he looks a bit green in the face. 5:34:07 PM Felix: I don't know. I woke up and she was gone. 5:35:36 PM Kate: David: ... there's no way she could have done this. 5:35:43 PM Kate: Forrester: That remains to be seen. 5:36:10 PM Felix: We're all suspects, David. 5:36:11 PM Kate: He uses a handkerchief to pull out one of the knives and examines it carefully before placing it in a bag. 5:36:24 PM Felix: Did you find anything in their mouths? 5:36:31 PM Kate: Forrester: I have not yet looked. 5:36:52 PM Kate: He puts the second knife away in a bag. One is a kitchen knife; this one looks like a genuine antique, though. 5:39:08 PM Kate: Forrester opens the mouths; sure enough, the other two pieces of the soul are on the parchment scraps. 5:39:58 PM Kate: The Ib was written on the man's, and the Ba on the other; heart and personality respectively. 5:40:42 PM Felix: ...that's five. 5:43:47 PM Kate: David: All five. 5:44:03 PM Kate: Forrester: If the Countess is missing.... 5:44:21 PM Kate: David: Dammit, are you saying a tiny little woman like her could do this? To a grown man? 5:45:00 PM Kate: Forrester: It does not seem likely. However, it *does* seem likely that she has met with misadventure in some way. It is easy to break an ankle simply walking through this sort of terrain. 5:46:25 PM Felix: I'm going to find her. 5:48:30 PM Kate: David: ... I'll go with you, I suppose. Damnit. DAMN it. 5:49:13 PM Kate: David: Paul's taking care of the women, by the way. You realize he's potty about your sister, don't you? 5:49:48 PM Felix: I know. 5:50:07 PM Felix: Felix goes off in search of Yelena! 5:50:34 PM Kate: David follows him. "Wait, are we just going to wander around? She's never been here before, has she?" 5:51:21 PM Felix: Not that I know of. 5:51:38 PM Felix: Felix thinks of where she could have wandered off to! Any places of signifigance. 5:52:30 PM Kate: There are tombs and caves all over the place. 5:53:10 PM Kate: This isn't the region where Taia and Ramses first met, but it's very like it--very rugged terrain and you have to be quite careful where you walk. 5:53:38 PM Kate: David: We could check the places we're licensed to be digging. 5:53:52 PM Felix: Felix nods. "Seems as good a place as any to start." 5:53:59 PM Kate: David: Though she'd have no way of finding them. Maybe Paul described it to her. 5:55:25 PM Felix: Let's go. 5:56:37 PM Kate: David nods, and starts leading the way. "Where the hell is Forrester? This was done right under his damned pointy nose." 5:57:04 PM Felix: I don't know. Probably sleeping like the rest of us. 5:58:41 PM Kate: The two of you climb over rocks and sand and sand and rocks. 5:58:51 PM Kate: Up a bit to an area pocked with caves. 5:58:54 PM Kate: Roll a D10! 5:59:28 PM Felix: ((8!)) 5:59:35 PM Felix: ((He's like the anti-Kate.)) 5:59:56 PM Kate: ((Indeed!)) 6:00:19 PM Kate: Felix spots something white up on the hill a bit further. 6:00:27 PM Felix: Felix heads that way! 6:01:45 PM Kate: David: That's the edge of our permitted area. ... wait, what's that? 6:02:25 PM Kate: Felix gets there first. It's the Countess, in her white silk pajamas and white peignoir. Well, they were white. 6:02:51 PM Felix: Yelena? 6:03:17 PM Kate: Now they're brown, and it's easy to see why. She's apparently been digging a hole with her hands, which are a bit scraped up as a result. 6:04:40 PM Felix: Yelena! 6:05:04 PM Kate: She doesn't move; she's curled up in a little ball next to the hole she's dug. 6:05:11 PM Kate: David: Good god. 6:06:14 PM Felix: Felix shakes her. 6:07:38 PM Kate: Yelena blinks, and opens her eyes. "... Felix?" 6:07:54 PM Kate: David: What the hell was she doing out here? 6:09:37 PM Felix: Felix looks in the hole. 6:09:44 PM Felix: Sleepwalking, I'd say. 6:10:56 PM Kate: The hole has an odd shape to it-- almost like a ledge. 6:11:25 PM Kate: David points his flashlight in the hole. "... she found something." 6:11:41 PM Kate: Yelena blinks. "I'm cold." She sounds surprised. 6:12:12 PM | Edited 6:12:56 PM Felix: What's the last thing you remember? 6:15:16 PM Kate: Yelena: Going to sleep. You were upset. 6:15:45 PM Kate: David kneels and starts examining the hole, gently brushing aside more dirt. 6:16:14 PM Felix: ...there's been two more murders. 6:16:51 PM Kate: Yelena: I didn't... did I? 6:17:06 PM Kate: David: ... this is a step. Good god, this is a *step.* 6:17:34 PM | Edited 6:18:03 PM Felix: Felix looks her over. "You don't have any blood on you but your own. I don't think you did." 6:17:57 PM Kate: She squeezes Felix tightly. 6:18:12 PM Felix: ...you might have ruined your pajamas, though. 6:18:45 PM Kate: Yelena: I don't care. 6:19:10 PM Kate: David: No, no, you don't understand. This is a step. There's something down there. It's collapsed, but... 6:19:33 PM Felix: Felix looks around. Do I recognize what this area once was? 6:20:35 PM Kate: Sure. Felix remembers when people were being buried here in tombs--all the wealthy, famous people. Likely he was buried here himself, though of course he doesn't remember that. 6:21:47 PM Felix: Tombs. They're tombs. 6:21:54 PM Felix: FAmous people. Rich people. 6:23:02 PM Kate: David: This is still in our area. We're permitted to dig here. 6:23:39 PM Kate: David: This could be a major discovery! It's a *step.* 6:24:10 PM Kate: Beaming, he grabs the Countess by the shoulders and kisses her, hard, but just once on the lips, and slaps Felix on the back. 6:24:34 PM Felix: ...we still have a killer on the loose. 6:25:23 PM Kate: David: Killers only live about a hundred years, this is a thousand years old. 6:27:13 PM Kate: David: Thousands. Thousands of years old. 6:27:44 PM Felix: Let's hope that Forrester doesn't interfere with your discovery. ...how do you suppose Yelena knew this was here? 6:28:40 PM Kate: David: He'd damned well better not, this could be the biggest discovery in decades. 6:29:17 PM Kate: Yelena: I didn't know anything was here. I don't remember coming here. 6:30:14 PM Felix: We should get back. 6:31:08 PM Kate: David: Right. Right. ... good gad, she's not wearing any shoes. 6:31:17 PM Kate: Yelena: I can walk. 6:32:55 PM Felix: Come on, you can lean on me, Yelena. 6:33:41 PM Kate: David: Just pick her up, can't you? Or I will. 6:34:41 PM Felix: I can. C'mon. 6:35:43 PM Kate: Yelena allows herself to be picked up. She's smaller than she looks and quite easy to carry. 6:35:56 PM Kate: David jumps from rock to rock as if he were a gazelle. 6:37:14 PM Kate: When Felix gets back to the campsite they're just carting the bodies away. 6:37:33 PM Kate: One of the women servants is following the bodies. 6:38:55 PM Felix: Felix eyes her. Anyone I recognize? 6:40:04 PM Kate: Roll a D10! 6:41:03 PM Felix: ((6.)) 6:41:34 PM Kate: She seems familiar! 6:42:29 PM Felix: Yelena, you recognize that woman? 6:45:03 PM Kate: Yelena peers. "... no, but..." 6:45:06 PM Kate: She frowns. 6:45:15 PM Felix: Felix sets her down and goes after the woman! 6:47:17 PM Kate: The woman is moving toward the other end of the cabin area! 6:47:26 PM Felix: Excuse me! Miss! 6:48:44 PM Kate: She speeds up! 6:49:06 PM Felix: Felix chases! 6:49:10 PM Felix: Miss! 6:50:38 PM Kate: She *runs*! In the general direction of Luxor. 6:50:46 PM Felix: Felix tries to overtake her! 6:51:00 PM Kate: Roll a D10! 6:52:44 PM Felix: ((9!)) 6:52:49 PM Felix: ((ANTI KATE.)) 6:55:29 PM Kate: Felix catches her in only about ten seconds of running, and grabs her by the wrist. 6:55:34 PM Kate: She struggles a bit! 6:56:08 PM Kate: She's wearing the headscarf and veil that all the women servants do, as well as an all-enveloping dress-type garment. 6:56:31 PM Felix: It's okay miss, I don't want to hurt, you, I just wanted to ask you some questions. 6:56:36 PM Felix: Felix tries to get a look at her eyes. 6:58:04 PM Kate: They're dark brown and *very* familiar indeed! 6:58:48 PM Felix: ((Who has dark brown eyes?)) 6:58:59 PM Kate: Lots of people! 6:59:04 PM Kate: Including Egyptians, but. 6:59:26 PM | Edited 6:59:33 PM Kate: The woman keeps struggling to get away! 6:59:41 PM Kate: She's rather pale to be Egyptian, but it's possible. 7:00:47 PM Felix: ....Miss Grant, do stop struggling, it's unseemly. 7:01:46 PM Kate: Grant: Damn it! How did you know it was me? 7:01:57 PM Felix: I guessed, you just confirmed it. 7:02:12 PM Kate: She stops. "You won't tell the others, will you?" 7:04:54 PM Felix: .... what possible reason do I have to not tell them? C'mon, you should meet Captain Forrester. 7:06:24 PM Kate: Grant: Now you're turning me in to the *police*! Do I look like I murdered those people? 7:06:50 PM Kate: Grant: Mr. Cray, *please.* I've just been writing things down, that's all. *And* it's all been accurate. 7:07:05 PM Felix: then you have nothing to worry about, do you? 7:07:32 PM Kate: Grant: It's my job! They'll throw me out if they don't arrest me, then what will I do? Please, Mr. Cray, have *some* mercy, won't you? 7:08:20 PM Felix: Five people are *dead*, Miss Grant. Someone in this expedition killed them. And you're the only one directly profiting from these murders. 7:09:59 PM Kate: Grant: Look at me, Mr. Cray. I don't have a single bit of blood on me, do I? Do I *look* like I could stab people to death? Besides, why would I? I was doing just fine insinuating a curse before anyone had been killed at all. 7:10:38 PM Kate: Grant: I was just going to keep an eye out and wait until someone got sick or stubbed a toe. It always happens on these expeditions and I could've ginned up a curse from that, no need for *murder.* 7:11:48 PM Felix: Doesn't matter if I believe you or not. We're all of us suspects here, Miss Grant, and I don't see why you should be exempt. 7:12:16 PM Kate: Grant: Isn't there anything I can do to change your mind? I know you won't take a bribe and I wouldn't offer one anyway, but... 7:12:37 PM Kate: Grant: ... maybe you could use me where I'm at. 7:13:16 PM Kate: Grant: This outfit makes it easy to snoop around. If you let me keep on where I am I *might* be able to help solve these murders. 7:13:43 PM Felix: Tell me what you've learned so far, maybe I'll consider it. 7:14:10 PM Kate: Grant: Not as much as I'd like and that's the truth. 7:14:35 PM Kate: Grant: The preacher wanders around a lot, he might have the opportunity to do something like this, though I can't work out any kind of murder. 7:15:01 PM Kate: Grant: Some kids claim they saw a ghost tonight, and that the ghost did the murders. 7:15:38 PM Kate: Grant: Probably just an overactive imagination, really. I'm pretty sure somebody would've noticed an Egyptian princess wearing a gold crown wandering around the campsite, don't you think? 7:16:33 PM Felix: The damned cop *already* suspects me. Why should I hide *more* from him? 7:18:33 PM Kate: Grant: Well, I can tell you about him, if you want. I've dug up a fair amount of dirt on him, or at least, I've telegraphed to friends who have. 7:18:47 PM Kate: + 7:19:06 PM Felix: I'm listening. 7:21:48 PM Kate: Grant: Do we have a deal or not? Are you playing straight with me here? 7:23:10 PM Felix: I have a condition. No more stories until we figure this out. 7:24:09 PM Kate: Grant: ... that's my living, Mr. Cray. 7:24:20 PM Kate: Grant: I can't not work. 7:26:21 PM Felix: I'll pay you in the meantime. 7:26:41 PM Kate: Grant's eyes narrow. "You're not trying to bribe *me*, are you?" 7:29:59 PM Felix: I'm offering you a temporary job as an informant until we can flush out a damned *murderer*. After we figure that out, you get the exclusive on the story. I'll even sweeten it: We just found an undiscovered ruin. Might even be a tomb. Imagine breaking that story? You get to report on that *and* help me catch a killer. 7:31:31 PM Kate: Grant's eyes widen. "... that'll have to be made public as soon as people start working at the site of the new tomb, Cray, or somebody'll beat me to it. Word of that kind gets around fast." 7:33:13 PM Kate: Grant: ... and make sure you guard the site, too. Tomb robbery's a family business out here. 7:36:51 PM Felix: Fact remains, I don't want to see you pumping out sensationalistic crap that muddies the waters around here. Though you won't be able to keep your identity around here secret for long if you break the story. 7:38:37 PM Kate: Grant: ... I guess that's true. And what do you mean sensationalistic? I write *facts.* The curse is baloney but I never write that there *is* one, only that it's traditional stuff to put in a tomb, which it is. 7:39:32 PM Felix: So you just lead people to the conclusion. 7:41:22 PM Kate: Grant: The problem is, if you write science and history nobody'll read it. If you spice it up with a bit of gossip and just a little bit of magic everybody does. 7:42:03 PM Kate: Grant: Of course the real problem in being undercover like this is, I have no quotes and haven't been able to show a lot of people's personalities. That's what people want to read, it's about people. 7:45:38 PM Felix: .... all right. We're going to go meet with the Countess and the cop. The cop says he's just here 'to observe', and he's observant like a hawk. He *will* spot you eventually. I'll arrange it so that you stay were you are, undercover. You get to report on the new discovery. No curse stuff. 7:46:30 PM Kate: Grant: Well, there's one obvious problem with that. 7:46:42 PM Kate: Grant: If there *is* anything down there, there *will* be a curse. 7:47:10 PM Kate: Grant: I've talked to plenty of Egyptologists; that was pretty standard lingo for a tomb back in the day. 7:48:21 PM Felix: And I've read your articles. There's a world of difference between talking about a curse as they existed in the ancient world and saying 'I don't wanna say it's a curse, but it's a curse'. 7:51:42 PM Kate: Grant: ... well, all right, I guess I can work around it. But you're not reading anything I write before it goes in. No competent reporter lets a subject do that. 7:54:39 PM Felix: Fair enough. Work with us here and I'll see you get interviews with everyone involved. Be more trouble than you're worth, I give the exclusive to someone else. 7:55:22 PM Kate: She snorts. "All good reporters are more trouble than they're worth, Mr. Cray." 7:55:51 PM Felix: I mean, get in the way of us trying to figure out who killed a thirteen year old boy, Miss Grant. 7:58:51 PM Kate: Grant: Even if I didn't have a heart I wouldn't do that. Justice delivered makes a better story. Besides, I saw the bodies, I want this bastard caught, whoever it is. ... by the way... 8:00:12 PM Felix: Yes? 8:00:56 PM Kate: Grant: I agree with you about your meddlesome policeman. He's not Egyptian, he's British. I guess his father was some Arab war leader, and he was with British intelligence in the war until he got blown up. 8:01:15 PM Kate: Grant: Your girlfriend's husband died under mysterious circumstances. 8:02:04 PM Kate: Grant: And your sister goes through men like they were Japanese facial tissues. 8:03:04 PM Kate: Grant: Though there's nothing wrong with that. Makes for an interesting thumbnail and a little spicy scandal, but really, you've met high-society men. No offense, but most of 'em are as bad or worse than the women. 8:04:55 PM Kate: Grant: The Driscolls are what they say they are, mostly--they have some rich relatives, something about a biscuit company, but they're the virtuous poor branch of the family. Every bit of their money goes into their work here, and they starve the rest of the time. Miss Driscoll was at some kind of sanitarium for polio patients but they ran out of money to keep her there. 8:05:18 PM Kate: Grant: And that's just as well, she's wasted in a place like that anyway. I bet she was bored as hell, poor kid. 8:05:44 PM Kate: Grant: Haven't been able to dig up much on O'Malley yet, but I'm working on it. The German girl, too. 8:07:23 PM Felix: All right. Come on, then. 8:09:14 PM Kate: Grant: You better not be conning me, Cray. 8:10:19 PM Felix: I'm not. I'm just trying to offer you something worth your cooperation. 8:12:19 PM Kate: Grant: All right. Well, I'll do right by you as best you can. But if you, or more likely, your girlfriend, is the killer, I'm not going to keep quiet. 8:12:47 PM Felix: It's not her. I know it. I thought it was you, honestly. 8:14:09 PM Kate: Grant: Of course it's not me! Besides, I probably have alibis for at least some of the murders. All right, let's go. 8:14:39 PM Kate: She starts walking back. "If she killed her husband I don't see why she wouldn't kill a perfect stranger, Cray." 8:15:05 PM Felix: I'm guessing you haven't met a lot of Russians. 8:15:58 PM Kate: Grant: Oh, I've met a few. I've met a few murderers too. 8:17:03 PM Felix: Russians are pragmatic. I don't think she killed her husband. And I know she didn't kill these workers. There's no reason or it. 8:18:50 PM Kate: Grant: She could be crazy. But that doesn't fit with the husband. 8:19:42 PM Kate: Grant: By all accounts he was scum. 8:20:15 PM Kate: The two of them make it back to the scene of the crime. Forrester is still there, as are David and Paul; the Countess is nowhere in evidence. 8:20:34 PM Kate: Forrester looks at Felix. "Ah, you've returned. May I have a word with you in private, please." 8:21:04 PM Felix: Good idea, I have something to talk to you about, too. 8:21:45 PM Kate: Forrester limps his way into one of the other cabins; it looks empty. He closes the door. 8:23:17 PM Felix: What do you need? 8:23:23 PM Kate: Forrester: Something unusual seems to be going on. 8:23:26 PM Kate: ((BRB.)) 8:24:22 PM Felix: ((Okay!)) 8:26:41 PM Kate: ((Trying to order a pizza. Pizza girl is new. >.<)) 8:28:30 PM Felix: (((mmmm, pizza.)) 8:28:41 PM Kate: ((I had a craving for it last night and couldn't have any.)) 8:29:12 PM Kate: Forrester: ... this is rather difficult to explain. 8:30:51 PM Kate: Forrester: I can't remember where I was earlier tonight. Or what I did for a period of approximately three hours. During that period of time I also seem to have lost an entire set of clothes--I had only brought three--and taken a bath somehow. In short I *may* well need to arrest myself. 8:31:17 PM Felix: ... have you been having strange dreams, Forrester? 8:32:00 PM Kate: Forrester: Why do you ask? 8:32:09 PM Felix: Seems to be going around. 8:33:29 PM Kate: Forrester: I rarely remember my dreams anymore. 8:35:44 PM Felix: There have been strange occurences going on since we left Cairo. Where could you have taken a bath? 8:37:31 PM Kate: Forrester: The bath building, I imagine. I didn't find anything of use there, but it was wet. ... I had expected to find blood, but I may have been rather... thorough. 8:38:16 PM Felix: Have you ever had any episodes like this before? 8:38:31 PM Kate: Forrester: No. However... 8:39:50 PM Felix: Felix raises an eyebrow! 8:41:06 PM Kate: Forrester: It is entirely possible my brain has been damaged. 8:41:46 PM Felix: You're a logical man, aren't you? 8:43:56 PM Kate: Forrester: As much as it is possible to be so. 8:44:08 PM Kate: Forrester: ... as much as it is possible for me to be so. 8:44:53 PM Felix: I'm not, not so much, anyway. I think there's something supernatural at work. 8:47:10 PM Kate: Forrester: There are strange things in this world, most certainly. What sort of supernatural thing? If a ghost is killing people, how do we stop it? 8:49:16 PM Felix: I don't know. But I think some supernatural force is killing these people through us, basically. There have been five murders, for five parts of the soul according to the ancient Egyptians. 8:49:26 PM Felix: That or some hypnotist is making us kill each other. 8:50:48 PM Kate: Forrester: I would believe a ghost before I would believe a hypnosis hypothesis. 8:51:20 PM Kate: Forrester: Hypnosis cannot make you do anything you would not do otherwise. I can assure you I would never murder a child. 8:58:48 PM Felix: Just throwing ideas out there. As far as ghosts go... I think it's tied to these dreams that I've been having. 8:59:44 PM Kate: Forrester: What dreams? 9:00:28 PM Felix: I'm a prince in ancient Egypt. These are vivid dreams. And I remember them all when I wake up. 9:02:24 PM Kate: Forrester: I haven't remembered a dream since I was injured. 9:06:24 PM Felix: Mmm. Also, earlier tonight, Yelena sleepwalked and uncovered a long undiscovered tomb at the edge of our dig site. 9:07:03 PM Kate: Forrester: ... we are going to need to hire guards. I suppose the Driscolls will see that done. 9:08:29 PM Felix: Whatever the case, I don't think you're responsible for what you might have done. 9:09:17 PM Kate: Forrester: No? 9:10:10 PM Felix: No. THis... force, whatever it is, bares the blame. 9:12:32 PM Kate: Forrester: ... the question remains how to stop it. 9:14:09 PM Felix: I don't know. I've never fought a ghost. I think the question is.... why these peole were killed. It's tied into the symbols in their mouths, the five parts of a soul. 9:14:35 PM Kate: Forrester: And now the soul is complete. What is next? 9:14:45 PM Felix: I don't know. 9:14:56 PM Felix: It could be tied into the tomb that Yelena found. 9:16:31 PM Kate: Forrester: Then the excavation should continue, you think? 9:19:02 PM Felix: If we went to finish this, or end this force... I think so. Don't most ghosts have unfinished business? 9:19:34 PM Kate: Forrester: Supposedly. 9:21:26 PM Kate: Forrester: We could attempt an exorcism or something of that nature. 9:21:49 PM Felix: Possibly. 9:23:45 PM Kate: Forrester: Do you think it would work? 9:26:41 PM Felix: I really don't know. Would something of that religion listen to something of another religion? 9:28:12 PM Kate: Forrester: I've no idea. 9:28:23 PM Felix: We can try. 9:30:58 PM Kate: Forrester: How convenient to have a priest on site. 9:31:29 PM Felix: Mmmm. 9:31:45 PM Felix: ... well. 9:35:03 PM Felix: ... I need to find Yelena. 9:35:41 PM Kate: Forrester: Go ahead. I'm going to sleep for now; the scene is secured. 9:35:46 PM Kate: Forrester: Good evening. 9:36:09 PM Felix: Felix nods. 9:36:18 PM Felix: Felix leaves the cabin! 9:37:36 PM Kate: He almost runs into Celestine. 9:38:03 PM Kate: Celestine: Felix! 9:38:08 PM Kate: She hugs him tightly. 9:38:09 PM Felix: Are you okay? 9:39:03 PM Kate: Celestine: Of course. Are you? 9:39:12 PM Felix: I'm fine. 9:39:22 PM Felix: ... two more bodies. 9:40:36 PM Kate: Celestine: It's horrible, isn't it? 9:41:02 PM Felix: ... and Yelena dug up a new ruin in her sleep. There's something supernatural going on here, Cel. 9:43:05 PM Kate: Celestine: Ghosts and goblins, really? Do you think so? I know you don't want it to be her. 9:44:18 PM Felix: It's not her. When the bodies were killed, she was sleepwalking and digging in the dirt. And I know that what she found was a tomb. A tomb for the rich, for the nobles. 9:45:26 PM Kate: Celestine: You can kill somebody *and* dig, Felix... 9:47:21 PM Felix: Not like that. And not without getting blood all over your white pajamas. 9:49:06 PM Kate: Celestine: Oh. ... I saw it, so no... probably not. You're right, then. She couldn't have. 9:49:13 PM Kate: Celestine brightens a bit. 9:49:54 PM Felix: ...Forrester thinks you kissed him because you were trying to throw him off my scent. 9:50:04 PM Kate: She turns bright red. 9:50:41 PM Felix: She I have decked him for asking that? I thought you might get cross with me for not giving you the chance to deck him yourself. 9:51:05 PM Kate: Celestine: Well, it wasn't that. At least, I hope it wasn't. I don't *think* it was. 9:52:22 PM Felix: ]I didn't think it was. 9:53:11 PM Kate: Celestine: He just *looked* at me. Like a snake looks at a bird, I suppose! 9:53:33 PM Felix: ... and then the bird kisses the snake. 9:53:58 PM Kate: Celestine: Well, yes. Birds are very stupid sometimes. 9:55:27 PM Felix: I never read that in a book. 9:55:44 PM Felix: Maybe he's a vampire? 9:56:15 PM Kate: Celestine: You're being ridiculous. He's got a tan. 9:56:27 PM Felix: Reverse vampire, then. 9:57:18 PM Kate: Celestine: He spits blood onto people? 9:57:37 PM Felix: And craves the sun. 9:58:23 PM Kate: Celestine: I'm certain he doesn't. And he's a very good kisser, once he gets over the surprise. 10:00:35 PM Felix: Well. ... I'm glad you kissed him for that reason. If you kissed him for the other one... that means you think I did it and you needed to protect me. 10:02:15 PM Kate: Celestine: Well I might be protecting you even if you didn't, you know. 10:02:22 PM Kate: Celestine: Besides, I'm sure you didn't do it. 10:04:11 PM Felix: Good, I didn't. 10:04:38 PM Felix: And Yelena didn't, either. 10:06:42 PM Kate: Celestine: No. I suppose not. 10:06:56 PM Kate: Celestine: ... I suppose I'll *have* to talk to Forrester. 10:09:09 PM Felix: You probably should. Get some sleep, though. Tomorrow will be a busy day. 10:09:52 PM Kate: Celestine: I don't think I want to talk to him. 10:10:17 PM Felix: You should. At the very least to set him straight. Or deck him if you need to. 10:12:26 PM Kate: Celestine: I'd be afraid to. I'm afraid to talk to him. 10:12:39 PM Kate: Celestine: It's that *eye.* You don't do that with your eye, Felix. 10:14:18 PM Felix: Do what? 10:15:49 PM Kate: Celestine: Look at people and freeze them on the spot. 10:18:06 PM Felix: And apparently make them kiss me. 10:18:20 PM Kate: Celestine: *Do* you? Is it a power you get when you lose your eye? 10:18:53 PM Felix: I've never learned it. This damned eye hasn't given me any advantages. 10:22:50 PM Kate: Celestine: Yelena seems to like it. 10:23:28 PM Felix: It's a nice eye, no denying it, but I don't think it's any special power. 10:26:23 PM Kate: Celestine: Ariadne thinks you're desperately in love with her. She made me swear to get you to let her be a bridesmaid at the wedding. 10:28:45 PM Felix: Well, Ariadne told me that she was thinking about having a crush on Forrester. 10:30:48 PM Kate: Celestine: What a cold-blooded cat! *Thinking about.* I wish I were only thinking about it. 10:31:57 PM Felix: So it *is* a crush you have. 10:34:13 PM Kate: Celestine: He's frightening! 10:35:22 PM Felix: And apprently that makes you want to kiss him. 10:37:24 PM Kate: Celestine: No. Yes. ... Oh damn it, Felix, I don't know. 10:37:43 PM Felix: Go get some sleep, Cel. 10:39:42 PM Kate: Celestine: All right. 10:39:54 PM Kate: She kisses Felix on the cheek and heads back to her little cabin. 10:41:14 PM Felix: Felix heads back to the countess' cabin! 10:43:34 PM Kate: She's changed into a fresh set of nightclothes--this time a slinky white nightgown, silk. 10:44:33 PM Felix: ...how are you doing? 10:45:48 PM Kate: She stands up, smiling. "Quite well. Though I am afraid my manicure is ruined." 10:46:10 PM Felix: Felix walks over to her. 10:47:48 PM Kate: She embraces him, with a satisfied little "mm." 10:56:01 PM Felix: So apparently Forrester has some mysterious power in his eye. 10:59:56 PM Kate: Yelena: His eye is not as interesting as yours. 11:00:10 PM Felix: Oh? 11:01:26 PM Kate: Yelena: Certainly not. 11:01:58 PM Felix: How is my eye interesting? 11:05:29 PM Kate: Yelena: All the colors in it. It only looks like one color from far away. 11:07:46 PM Felix: ...really? I always just thought it was green. 11:08:26 PM Kate: Yelena: Up close, it has many colors in it. Dark green, light green, grey, brown. 11:09:18 PM Kate: Yelena: Even blue. 11:10:22 PM Felix: .... huh. 11:10:27 PM Felix: Felix checks it in a mirror. 11:11:03 PM Kate: Looks green to you! 11:11:27 PM Felix: Hmm. 11:12:58 PM Felix: ((What color are her eyes? 11:13:33 PM Kate: ((Hers are blue. Taia's are grey.)) 11:15:53 PM Felix: ((I mean, right now?)) 11:16:27 PM Kate: Ah! Blue. 11:16:40 PM Kate: So deep they're almost violet. 11:18:53 PM Felix: Felix kisses her! 11:21:03 PM Kate: She kisses him back, moving her arms up a bit for a better angle. 11:23:11 PM Felix: ...you're important to me, too, Yelena. 11:26:44 PM Kate: Yelena smiles. "You can call me Lena. People used to do that, a long time ago." 11:31:25 PM Felix: Lena? All right. Do you prefer it? 11:32:56 PM Kate: Yelena: It reminds me of when I was young. Before things changed. 11:37:11 PM Felix: Felix smiles. "All right, Lena it is." 11:38:31 PM Kate: Yelena: Even I was young once, Felix. 11:38:52 PM Felix: I never said you weren't. 11:39:51 PM Kate: Yelena: When did you grow up? In the war? 11:40:54 PM Felix: According to some, we're still waiting on it. 11:43:32 PM Kate: Yelena: Mm. I suspect you would disagree. 11:43:48 PM Felix: No. I just don't feel the need to worry about it. 11:48:47 PM Kate: Yelena: I'm not worried either. ... I feel different now. 11:49:33 PM Felix: How? 11:50:26 PM Kate: Yelena: Better. Full of energy, full of life. Things are brighter, more real somehow. 11:50:49 PM Felix: Hmmm. I wonder if it had to do with your sleepwalking episode. 11:54:00 PM Kate: Yelena: It may have. 11:54:05 PM Felix: Maybe finding the tomb? I don't know. 11:56:24 PM Kate: She smiles up at him, resembling Taia a bit, but only in expression; her eyes are still very blue. 11:59:24 PM Felix: Felix kisses her again. "I suppose we haev a busy day tomorrow, don't we?" AM Kate: Yelena kisses him back, and stays very close. AM Kate: Yelena: We do. But now... I feel so alive. I don't want to sleep. Not yet. AM Felix: Well. We can fill the time until we get sleepy. AM Kate: Yelena: How would you like to fill the time, Felix? AM Felix: Felix grins and kisses her again! AM Kate: She kisses him again, and tugs him over to the bed eagerly! And probably that's a curtain there! AM Felix: Yeah! AM Kate: She's still terribly cuddly afterward. AM Felix: He obliges her by being cuddlable! AM Kate: She turns the lights off at some point. "Felix?" AM Felix: Lena? AM Kate: Lena: Tell me about your dreams. AM Felix: Literal dreams? Or aspirations? AM | Edited 12:36:38 AM Kate: Lena: Both. AM Felix: Hmm. WEll, most recently, I've been dreaming that I'm an egyptian prince, as you know. AM Kate: Lena: I know. AM Felix: I just want to travel. Maybe at some point own a bar or a club. AM Kate: Lena: I could buy you twenty clubs, if that's what you wanted. AM Felix: Well... I don't need that many. And I don't want to do it yet. AM Kate: Lena: You couldn't manage so many. AM Felix: Yeah, that doesn't sound like something that would be fun. I'd just want one club. Maybe one I paid for with some pirate gold I discovered, or something. AM Kate: Lena: We'll have to look for pirate gold. AM Felix: Felix nods. "After we're done with this egyptian thing, sure." AM Kate: Lena: You'll have to teach me to swordfight too. AM Felix: I could manage that. AM Kate: Lena: ... Felix? AM Felix: Yes? AM Kate: Lena: I... want to tell you something. But I don't want anything to change. AM Felix: Okay. If you're secretly a rabbit in a human suit, I can't make any promises. AM Kate: Lena: No. No rabbit. AM Kate: Lena: We Russians are eagles; we eat rabbits. No. AM Felix: ...so you're not an eagle in a human suit, are you? AM Kate: Lena: No. AM Kate: Lena: After I... escaped Russia, I reunited with my family. Everyone said I was different, that I... came back wrong. AM Kate: Lena: My old nurse told me they had stolen my dusha. ... she was very superstitious. AM Felix: Your dusha? AM Kate: Lena: My soul, my spirit? But in Russian it is more. Suffering and compassion, the person is the soul. It does not translate well. AM Kate: Lena: ... I knew then I could not survive as I was, so I began to take lessons. AM Kate: Lena: Speaking, singing, dancing, playing instruments, English, French, history, and the use of a knife. AM Kate: Lena: And when it came time, I went back to Russia. AM Felix: You sing? AM Kate: Lena: I sing, yes. Well enough to pass as a music-hall singer. AM Felix: Sorry to interrupt. AM Kate: Lena smiles. "It doesn't bother me to remember." AM Kate: Lena: I used that skill, and the others, to pass unnoticed in the new Russia. AM Kate: Lena: When I arrived at my old home, I found time and... politics, shall we say? had robbed me of most of my captors. Only two were left. AM Felix: Yes? AM Kate: Lena: Well. And there was also the pet half-wit they had helping them with chores. But he did not count; he cried more at my whippings than I did. AM Kate: Lena: ... you must understand, I didn't think I would be able to do it. To look these men in the face. To be in the same room again, unseen, unnoticed. AM Felix: How did you manage it? AM Kate: Lena: They took my soul. I almost believed what old Mariana said by then. I had to get it back. AM Felix: What happened? AM Kate: Lena: I killed them. AM Kate: Lena: Not Andrei. Andrei I brought to France when I left. There he picks flowers and no one whips anyone while he is near. AM Felix: Andrei? The... 'half-wit'? AM Kate: Lena nods. AM Felix: Mmmm. AM Kate: Lena: He never hurt anyone. AM Felix: ((What was the name of that one serial killer back in Paris in the beginning?)) AM Kate: ((Desire Landru.)) AM Felix: ((Okay! Just checking. LANDRU. Bastard computer.)) AM Kate: ((You are not of the body!)) AM Felix: So, after that... what happened? AM Kate: Lena: I came home and got married to a man I liked well enough, before I found out about his temper and his drinking. AM Felix: Where was home? AM Kate: Lena: Then? France. My family is not sure I am really me. AM Felix: No? Because they thought your soul was gone? AM Kate: Lena: Because I wasn't a frivolous little girl anymore. AM Felix: Oh. AM Kate: Lena: I suppose they broke me. AM Felix: But... you feel better now? AM Kate: Lena: Today I feel wonderful. I feel wonderful, Felix. AM Felix: Felix smiles. "Good." AM Kate: Lena smiles too. "And nothing's changed?" AM Felix: Hmmm? How do you mean? AM Kate: Lena: Between us. AM Felix: No. You killed people who needed killing. AM Kate: Lena: No one else. No one. AM Felix: I know. AM Kate: Lena snuggles up to him again. AM Felix: Felix puts an arm around her. AM Felix: Does Forrester still make you nervous? AM Kate: Lena: No. AM Felix: .... he thinks he killed the victims tonight. He told me that he blacked out, and that he's missing a set of clothes. AM Felix: I think he believes tehere's something supernatural going on, too. AM Kate: Lena: And your sister? AM Felix: She still doesnt' know what to think. AM Kate: Lena: As long as she doesn't think it's you. AM Felix: I don't think she does. AM Kate: Lena: Good. AM Kate: She kisses him lightly. "... we should try to sleep." AM Felix: We should. AM Kate: Lena: Unless you'd rather not. AM Felix: Felix smiles. "Are you tired?" AM Kate: Lena: No. AM Felix: Well. Maybe we should exert ourselves more. AM Kate: She smiles, and pushes him over a bit to kiss him again. And that's another curtain. Category:Logs Category:Mummy Game